Julia’s gaze locked with mine. An empty-souled creature stared back at me. “I smell your fear,” she said in Heavlense, our native language, one that didn’t require much tongue movement and was spoken at the back of the throat. “I’ve never smelled fear on you before. If I could, I’d lick you now.” She chuckled, then choked on blood.
“Julia.” I stroked her cheek, unwilling to accept she was now Marked and not able to return to me. “You promised you would return to me. Do it now.”
She stared.
I smelled urine, heard her pee on the floor.
“We will stay in the cocoon made of wings and strength, and I will pour every ounce of my power into her until I reach you wherever you are and sever your head.”
“Not even you can do that.”
“Let’s try it. Shall we?”
“You wouldn’t dare. Your mortal will die.”
“She’s dead already.” I funneled my power into her, making her body glow with golden light, and I held her when she struggled against me, my eyes firmly locked with hers. I wanted her back. With me. Here, telling me how horrible I was, perhaps even giving me a bit of a conscience and tact, and definitely challenging my authority.
“Let go, Lucifer. I know you can’t control her the way you wish. I know this because she’s mine. Let go.” I funneled more power into her. I feared she’d die, but if she couldn’t return from the darkness, then she was dead anyway. With nothing to lose, I pushed harder. Her eyes took on a golden glow. A tear slid down her cheek. I wiped it, tasted it. It tasted like despair, like me. I was desperate to save her. “Return to me,” I ordered.
Julia slumped in my arms, and I held her briefly. With a fist in her hair, I pulled so I could see her eyes. Soulful, if frightened, brown eyes stared back at me. Blood covered her chin, and I pushed her mouth open. With the power I poured into her, I’d healed her tongue three times over, so when she spoke, I wasn’t surprised. “He got me.” Julia wiped her mouth, then stared at her bloody hand. “I’m a mess.”
“Never mind your appearance.”
Her face flushed red. “And down my legs… It went all over the floor right in front you. I hate him.” She covered her face. “This is so embarrassing.”
“I don’t mind.”
“I do,” she whispered.
“I’ve seen worse.”
She dropped her hands. “I haven’t, okay? The worst I’ve seen is happening now.” Julia sighed. “I want to shower and go down into town, have coffee, and read a book. I want to do something normal. Anything normal. Do you think we can do that? One hour, hell, half an hour.”
“You may dress in your uniform.” I released her. “That is our normal.”
Her shoulders slouched in defeat. The enemy approached, but she was more important because a battle won was not a victory if Julia was defeated. I enveloped her, surrounded her in the shelter of my wings, and gave her my courage.
“I’m the weakest link,” she whispered.
“You’re not weak. Not if you can fend off Lucifer.”
“But for how long, Michael? How long can I last before he drives me insane. A day, a week, a month?”
“Stop it,” I ordered. “I set out to make a soldier out of you, and we will soldier onward. We will train, mentally, physically. We will do everything possible and even the impossible. I will not give up. I will not surrender!”
She placed a hand over my heart “Okay, we will not surrender.”
She didn’t sound convinced. “I can’t give you immortality, but I can give you courage, and I’ve poured all the power your body can handle into it. Trust that you are ready to take on any Marked.” I kissed the top of her head. “But also know that wherever you are, I will always find you and lead you back to me. It’s not a bad place to be, is it?”
She shook her head.
“Good.”
Power brushed my senses. My males shouted. I glanced outside to see my fleet had assembled. Their wings tightly pulled back, they held still and strong, a concrete wall made of the bodies of the finest warriors.
“What’s happening?” Julia asked.
“Let’s see. Shall we?” I held her tightly against me and shot up, opening the roof of my chambers as I went. Above the House, I hovered, watching. Julia turned her head. “Oh my God, Michael, those can’t be birds.”
Far over the seas, Ras beat their wings furiously. Thousands of them, their leather wings covering the horizon. “They’re rushing here to die,” I said.
“So many. Fuck. Fuuuuck.”
“Are you questioning my skills?”
“What? No, of course not.”
Uriel rose from the front, his face split in a grin. Happy angel. I smiled in turn, my heart full. I dropped back down and put Julia on the floor then cradled her face. “They’ve come for the sword. They will try to take it from us. Are we going to let them?”
“No, Commander.”
I smiled. “Atta girl. Get dressed, soldier. Full battle armor and all your weapons. Noditas will shadow you. Throwing is your greatest skill, as is endurance. Do not leave the gates.”
“I only have three knives to throw.”
“You can retrieve them, of course.”
“Of course,” she giggled, a little hysterical. “Oh Michael, everything is easy for you.”
“It is easy for you too. For the time being. I have poured power into your body. It will serve you well in battle. Trust your skills. Throw the knives, then will them back.”
“Just like that. I will them back.”
“Yes, preferably back into the sheaths, not into your head.”
“Great.”
I nodded. “If anyone approaches you, you slice here, here, and here, and maybe here too if you're feeling adventurous. They'll bleed fast." He pointed at the places on his body. "Or gut them from the bottom of the belly all the way to the throat. I mean anyone, even your fellow soldiers, who may or
